Separator

ABSTRACT

A separator unit for sequentially denesting the lowermost container from an upright stack of nested-like containers, each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof. The unit includes a first driven rotor with which the rim of the lowermost container has downward engagement along the surface of a segmental ledge extending from the first rotor pending rotation of the rotor through an arc to withdraw the ledge from the rim, and a blade on a second rotor with which the rim of the lowermost container is engaged and gradually pushed downwardly to separate the lowermost container from the stack when the flange of the first rotor is withdrawn from engagement with the rim of the lowermost container. The second rotor is coupled to the first rotor for rotation in unison with the first rotor about a common axis while allowing the second rotor to have limited movement relative to the first rotor along the common axis.

United States Patent 1 Henschke 'et a1.

[ June 26, 1973 SEPARATOR [75] Inventors: Ernest J. l-lenschke, Des Plaines;

George II. Logemann, Mundelein; Stanley Moorad, Niles; Lino P. Savlo, Glenview, all of I11.

[73] Assignee: Ekco Products, Inc., Wheeling, Ill.

[22] Filed: Mar. 24, 1971 [21]- Appl. No.: 127,445

[52] US. Cl 214/8.5 K, 221/222, 221/297 [51] Int. Cl. B65g 59/10 [58] Field of Search 214/8.5 R, 8.5 A, 214/8.5 K, 8.5 1-]; 221/221, 222, 297, 251

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,595,013 4/1952 Smith 2l4/8.5 K 3,198,382 8/1965 Cleary 221/222 3,426,941 2/1969 l-lovekamp 221/222 2,433,736 12/1947 Carew 214/8.5 K 1,634,566 7/1927 Wessman 214/8.5 K 3,104,780 9/1963 Carter et al 221/251 X 3,283,955 11/1966 Crabtree 221/251 2,659,522 11/1953 Ninneman et a1. 221/222 X 3,191,804 6/1965 Amic, Sr 221/251 X FOREIGN PATENTS Q R APPLICATIONS 889,085 9/1943 France 221/222 6/1952 Great Britain 214/8.5 K 12/1963 Great Britain 221/222 Primary ExaminerRobert J. Spar Att0meyRobert D. Teichert and Donald .1.

Koprowski [5 7] ABSTRACT the mouth thereof. The unit includes a first driven rotor with which the rim of the lowermost contaiker has downward engagement along the surface of a segmental ledge extending from the first rotor pending rotation of the rotor through an arc to withdraw the ledge from the rim, and a blade on a second rotor with which the rim of the lowermost container is engaged and gradually pushed downwardly to separate the lowermost container'from the stack when the flange of the first rotor is withdrawn from engagement with the rim of the lowermost container. The second rotor is coupled to the first rotor for rotation in unison with the first rotor about a common axis while allowing the second rotor to have limited movement relative to the first rotor along the common axis.

8 Claims, 15 Drawing Figures SEPARATOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a separator unit for sequentially denesting containers of the type having an outstanding rim or bead about the upper edge thereof as an incident to transferring said containers, one at a time, along a predetermined line of fall between a stack in which said containers are in nested open end upward relation and a container depositing station with which said stack is vertically aligned.

The invention has particular, though not exclusive, utility in the handling of thin metal foil containers of the type having a curled rim or bead along its upper edge. Such containers are conveniently stored, upon manufacture, in nested fashion and fit relatively tightly in a compact stack prior to being filled or otherwise placed in service.

It has been common in former separator units to employ a pair of rotors in fixed axially aligned relation about an upright rotating shaft and rotating said rotors in unison with said shaft with the lower rotor providing a peripheral ledge in the line of fall of said containers during a partial cycle of rotation of said shaft and a gap in said ledge in the line of fall of said containers during another partial cycle of rotation of said shaft whereby the rim of the lowermost container was disengaged from a supported position on said ledge in said first partial cycle of rotation of said lower rotor. While the lowermost container of the stack of containers was thus disengaged from a supported position on said ledge of the lower rotor a blade, forming a radial extension of the upper rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the ledge of the lower rotor, exerted wedging action between the rim of said lowermost container and the rim of the next lowermost container in the stack so as to dislodge the lowermost container and thereby free the container for its descent to the container depositing station.

It has been found, however, that because of slight variations in the vertical dimension of the rims of the nested containers as well as slight variation in the nesting depths of adjacent containers in the stack that the axially fixed position of the upper rotor sometimes interfered with entry of the rotor blade into the area between the lowermost and next to lowermost containers in the stack. As a consequence the blade would sometimes act to damage the beaded rim and thereby impair its serviceability in establishing a proper seal with a cover applied to said rimas an incident to forming a closed packaging assembly. This proved to be a particularly knotty problem during high speed operation where it is desired to transfer upwards of 100 containers per minute. At these speeds the difficulty of denesting the lowermost container became more pronounced when the stack comprised a great number of nested containers, thus exacting more weight on the lower containers directly involved in the denesting process.

In addition, some containers were particularly difficult to denest and fall freely because of their tendency to stick to the next lowermost container. As a result, the container might not land upright in the container depositing station, or may not even be completely separated from the stack above until the next lowermost container was separated from the stack, resulting in two or more containers being deposited on the con- '2 tainer depositing station. in nested relationship at one time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly it is an object of this invention to provide an improved separator unit which avoids the problem encountered in former rotor type separator units.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a separator unit of the type indicated wherein the blade of the upper rotor is coupled to the lower rotor in such manner as to allow the blade to not only move axially of the shaft toward and away from the lower rotor but to have limited tilting movement about axes extending radially of the shaft while said rotors rotate in unison with the shaft. By thus providing this floating condition of the blade in relation to the lower rotor, the blade is allowed to undergo self-adjusting action to accommodate variations in the rim dimensions as well as variations in the nesting depths of adjacent containers and thereby avoid injury to such rims of the containers.

Further facility and efficiency in transferring the containers is achieved by providing means to relieve the weight of allbut a predetermined number of containers of the stack of containers from the lower containers being separated from the stack during the transfer process." In addition, where a container to be transferred has a particular tendency to stick to the containers the above means are provided to ensure complete separation of the lowermost container from the stack for free descent to the container depositing station.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a further reading of the specification taken in conjunction with the drawing wherein:

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an installation of three separator units embodying the present invention in operative relation to a stack of nested containers.

FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken along line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged elevational view, partially crosssectioned, of a separator unit showing control means for limiting downward rocking movement of the floating rotor blade.

FIG. 4 is a horizontal section taken along line 44 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is an isolated view of the separator unit shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a bottom plan view of a separator unit.

FIG. 8 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 9 is an elevational view of a separator unit showing band to engage several containers located on a separate rotor above the frame of the apparatus.

FIG. 10 is an elevational view of a separator unit as in FIG. 6, further including a ramp to elevate a stack of containers.

FIG. 11 is an elevational view of a separator unit showing a helical groove in the lower rotor to receive the rim of the lowermost container and insure complete separation thereof from the rest of the stack.

FIG. 12 is a cross-section taken along line 12-12 of FIG. 11.

tions, alternative constructions and equi alentsdfalling within the spirit and scopeof the invention as expressed I ings, there is shown a typical?installation wherein an fl area designatesa containendepositing station; (such i for example as a conyeyor i i \ried from said station tofa fcontainer fillingzstationfpre paratory to the productionfof a merchandise packagi y assembly with whichsaidcontaineristobeassociatefil Roundmetalfoilwcontainers 11 of conventional size j upper edge thereof have beenchosen to illustrateonef a example of container susceptible {to :denesting from a dd stack of like containers with the use of separatinglunits embodying the featuresofathis invention. Tothis end an designated generally asfme and CQSaid u "ranged in uniformly spacedapart relation tially of a circle locatedcentrally of area] it ber andrelative positions; of suchsep arating junits will,

d of course, be subject to fvariation accordingltc Q Which the unitsare" operatiyely appliedl Guides G are? spaced around the circumference of s aid-circle, in centrally locatingthe container 11in areaaISw it ing support on a fixed frjame for r j upright axis parallel totheflineof fall to the depositing station 10.Powerro ing suitable transmissionmechanism not 1 screw 18 wherebythefrotor 11 turns in unisonwith the Q shaft 14 to which litissec ured. Eachlroton 17 has'ac' i 1 cumferentially eiitending peripheral po i'tiongofiiniform 1 radial dimension through anarc of approximate p24 effective to interceptthe ffall of acontain'erjl l having faces the area 131 Each'rotor 17 also jisprovidedl withf a gap asbest shown ijnjFlG. 7 operativetodisenjgage the gap 20 faces said area whereuponsaid containeris fromengagement the gap of the rotors 17,jthel FIGS 13A ,13B and 13C respecjtiyely illustrateithe; Apositionsfsequentially occupiedbythe components of l the separator unit haying thehelical groovep during i each cycle of travelirelativefto the stacktof containers operativelyassociatedtherewith. d

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OFTHE INVENTION d t 3 fwhilethe'in ention'is susceptiblefofyarious"mo difi cations and alternative constructionsiicertainillustra? will befdescribednbelowin considerable detail. It; should be understood, however; warme s is no intention to 1 limit the in ventionto thespecific formsdisclosed, but,

4 next lowennostcontainer 11 of the fstack has its rim lZ in downward engagement with 'QbliiidQZ defined by a t radially extending wing" portion ofa second rotor 231 in overhead relation to the gap in ro tor 1 7; During such engagement of theneitt swermqs sn aim 1 of the stac k with the blade22,1jthe stack 0f container s lisffin 1 fact so JPOT ed jthela bladfe Each rotor 2;!Qf has aw t ct'entralo e tarywsliliing enga ement iwith the eriphery; ofgja cyli \cri cal"neckjld\offa"spacer f rotatably tri e h s saru; asbest 1 0mm Flospu; i=2 d p 13B,andBCaRotor IZVhasXan upwardly openieircular ecess; 17a is pccupiedhy the mainly: enlarged ylindrieal base zsazam seer 2s associated therek 'arithj. Theiaradial dimension of=the centralropening of? l eachrotor lZSis sofenlargetiint-elation totheradial dii, nierlsienuorsa a:neckfbftmespaeer 25 a sa iated there 1 jwithl asj toflnoti only allow relative axial sliding move- 1 mentl of ieach rotor iZBonJthefneck ofthe spaceri'but alsoto allow limited tiltingfmovementbfi the mores f bout axes ex ten dingradially of the shaft 14lasso ciated, therewith, While thusha'ving its axis otrotationestab lijshed by it' ssociated spacer fi, rotor 231s preyented f fronitjri t t ng relative o gitsfassociatedj roton 25 means of {coupling p n'26f projectingfdo wnwar dly QR from a third rotor27 havingdownward bearing supportk g on thezoppersurfaceg oftheneck of the spacer f25positioned l there'helow. {The couplin pin "as; extends d fthrdughafially aligned reeiving openings in the 1 Qproton23andithetrotor17LAsshown inFIG S. 3 asas V thespaeer mayalsofbe formed integrally with rotorz'lf Itvwill he observed thatjthe associated rotors i 23 itsbejing at *andl27ghavemate ngtradial idimensionslgmeasured a circumferemfthegapfZD infrotor"17 exceptfor the blade 22o 3L'I'he um; [rotor2 Shown, each mar 27 isof sued a axial dimension as top ean upright jcylindr d facewithjwhich jrinis of a number of containers 11 at thelowerenti ofjthelstaclthas guidances ojas to] main; tain \thje stacle nyertical alignment centrally lof the area )tlfitoccupied by the stackl ofoontainersi A frusto co calwall po rtidn 27(z nierge "with theupperend ofsaid on the contrary, the iny entionis to coverallmodifica in the appended claims! y i it v With reference now more particularly tot'heidraw on which a container iscar i and construction haying 'at curledurim l 2flalongitlhefi area 13 extending upwardly from thecontainerfdepo s iting station 10 isiborderedhy three separatingunits cific shape and sizeuconditions of the=-cont Each unit A, B andCx includes a shaft14ha in gbear Dtdti n ab d y IUI the area 13 I i a? meai 'stha shownXCQni y nects a gear 16 fixed on shaft 14 of each un itto a powerf source to provide meansfor rotating isaidshaftsinyuni son at a uniform fspeedQEachshaft 141 isjroyidedwit a rotor 17 secured tbthe jshait 14by means of ase as separator and the; to tors f asso iated therewith are rotated. ln addition 1th its rim ilz in downward engagement therewith whjilei dne xt tohiiiowermos containersll of thelstaclqasflth said ledge is in a rotatedposition wherein the ledge 1 9f fbladelZrhdVed sta k area13towarda pos d d d y pd ft dnf ar sa dfar afl q a a circumferentially relieved, peripheral portiondeiining f iltingflof thehlade ilz downwardly under thefload} I tziineroflthe stack is limited by spa eersfi fl extendingCt upwardlyfrom an areaoftherotor 23 diametrically op Q posite the radially widestportion of the blade ZZWhich; has upwardengagementwith the surface of the upper-Q rotor 27 opposite iaid spacer.Accordinglyfithe blade 4 22" is assured of a predetei mined minimum axialspacf v released and free to fallto station 10. i

While the lowermost container 11is thusybeing freedil ingj jwhichhasqaxially slidahleas wellas ro ing in relation to the ledge of the rotor 17 subjacent thereto without interfering with freedom of the blade to rock or tilt upwardly as such adjustment of the blade is needed to accommodate variations in the location of the container rims in relation to said path of tiling movement.

In operation, when the area 13 is occupied by a stack of containers 11 having rims 12 in vertical alignment with the ledge 19 of each rotor 17 so that the lowermost container of the stack is supported thereby, the shafts 14 are driven so as to move the blade 22 of each rotor 23 in a counterclockwise direction as indicated by arrows in FIG. 1 through an arc of rotation sufficient to intercept the line of fall of said stock toward said depositing station 10. Accordingly, the rim of the lowermost container 11 will be wedged downwardly of the rim 12 of the next lowermost container 11 while the rim 12 of the next to the lowermost container 11 will be simultaneously initially engaged by the rotors l7 and cause the container to be lowered to the surface of the ledge 19. During such action of the blade 22, the gap 20 in the rotors 17 will allow the container to fall to the container depositing station therebelow while the next container undergoing support by the surface of the ledge 19 approaches the gap 20 for release of the container to the container depositing station 10.

To further ensure faultless separation of the lowermost container from the next lowermost container there is provided means for relieving from the lowermost container the weight of all the upper containers of said stack except for a predetermined number of containers above the lowermost container while the lowermost container is being loosened from the next lowermost container by the wedging action of blade 22. Such means may include a band 31 offset outwardly from upper rotor 27 to engage the rims 12 of several containers and thereby relieve the weight of the upper containers from the lower containers. Band 31 will occupy an arc of the circumference of rotor 27 large enough to engage the rims 12 of the containers while blade 22 is engaged between the lowermost container and the next lowermost container. After the rotor 27 has rotated to a point where the container rims 12 are no longer engaged with band 31, the upper containers will drop back onto the lower containers until the rotation is repeated. If desired, band 31 may be provided on a separate rotor 32 situated above and on a common axis with rotors 17, 23 and 27 above frame as shown in FIG. 9. Preferably, band 31 will be constructed of a somewhat resilient material so that enough pressure may be exerted on the rims 12 of the containers to hold the upper containers without damaging or distorting the rims.

As a more positive means to ensure that the weight of the upper containers will be relieved from the lower containers, there may be provided on ledge 19 of rotor 17 a ramp 33 inclined upwardly in the direction of rotation of the rotor as shown in FIG. 10. Ramp 33 is positioned on ledge 19 so that rim 12 of the next lowermost container will be elevated on the ramp just prior to engagement of blade 22 with the lowermost container. Thus the upper containers will be lifted a corresponding amount and band 31 would then be positioned to begin to engage the rims 12 of several of the upper containers when the upper rim 12 of the next lowermost container has reached the highest point 34 of ramp 33 and, as described above, to disengage the rims 12 when the lowermost container has been loosened from the next lowermost container by the action of blade 22. It can easily be seen that the number of containers that will remain as the upper containers are elevated can be predetermined as desired by choosing a desired vertical distance between the blade 22 and the lower edge of band 31.

By the use of the invention, it has been found that a continuous supply of containers 1 1 can be successively released to the container depositing station 10 while controlling such release so that one, and only one container is removed from the stack during each cycle of revolution of the blade 22. In addition the floating action which is provided for the blade 22 permits such self-adjustment of the blade axially of the shaft associated therewith, as well as tiltably about axes extended radially of said shaft, as to prevent damage to the rims of the containers which may become skewed as an incident to frictional forces developed by the rapid removal of the containers from the stack. As'seen above, bands 31 and ramps 33 on ledge 19 may be employed to relieve the weight of the stack from the lower containers during operation.

As stated earlier, some containers are difficult to denest in spite of the means employed above because of a particular tendency for the lowermost container to stick to the next lowest container. This sticking problem is most frequently encountered with plastic containers and particularly those that have flutes or other configurations in the side walls, or those that have side walls nearly vertical. It thus becomes desirable to drive the lowermost container mechanically downwardly in line with the predetermined line of fall of the containers until the lowermost container has been completely released from the next lowest container. As shown in FIGS. 11, 12 and 13A, 13B and 13C, this action may be accomplished by providing in rotor 17 a helical groove 35 in rotor 17 which will first receive the rim of the lowermost container as shown in FIG. 13A after .the blade 22 has completed its separating action and the container is positioned in gap 20 of ledge 19 and then progressively drive the container downwardly by action on the rim of the container as shown in FIGS. 13B and 13C as the rotor rotates. When the rim of the container reaches the lowest point of groove 35 it is completely released from the next lowest container and'it is allowed to fall freely to depositing station 10 below. Although a helical groove 35 defining a rotation of the rotor of approximately 360 has been described, it should be obvious that the length and number of rotations required for the rim of the container to travel the length of the groove could be varied depending on such factors as height and configuration of containers and the amount they tend to stick together.

When the container rims terminate in a laterally extending flange such as those shown in FIGS. 13A, 13B and 13C the rim of the container above the lowermost container is susceptible to becoming trapped between the blade 22 and upper rotor 27. To eliminate the risk of such rim being trapped, there is provided a knockout pin 36 securely disposed between the rotor 17 and the rotor 27 and extending through an opening in rotor 23. Pin 36 is located at a point near the periphery of the rotors at a point just following the trailing edge of blade 22 along the direction of rotation of the rotors.

While not shown in FIGS. 11, 12 and 13A, 13B and 13C, it should be obvious that a band 31 and ramp 33 first rotor to preventrotatiori of said second rotor rela tive to said first rotorwhile allowing saidfsecond rotor) to have limited movement axially of saidshafttoward t and away from said firstirotor, and saidjseeond rotor l l l t tending radially of said shaft said first rotorflhaving 1a asw may beemploye dalong with the helioal groove feature shown inlthes IWhatis claimed is; it I a to t y 1. A separator unit: for sequentiallydenesting like containers each havinganoutwardly projecting rim at themouth thereof whilesaidcontainersareiniopen end upward nested relationdefining' an upright stack as an i incident to transfer of saidcontainersalonga predetermined line of fall betweerifsaid stack andfia oontainer 1 depositing station in vertically aligned relatiomto said stack, said unit including ajdriven shaft supported for a rotation in a predetermined direction about alfi xedjaxis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured tosaidshatt for rotation in unison with said shaft, 1asecondrotorl s coupled to said first; rotor in overhead ,relationto said it staekchasdownward engagementtosupport said stack to iv/lien: said first :rotor occuoies st? rotatedlqposition i wherein said ledge interceptsfisaid line oflfallbetweert the stackcandijsaid corttainer receiving station and said 5 first rotor hav ng'a circuniferentij llyrelievedperiphferal I ni 1g tlmjj tilt; lowermostpan -ftjhestack is disengaged from sa yl edgeof the first rotorfwhen said rotoroocupieslasec ond rotated? position wherein said gapfis inyvertical alignment Withsaid fnerofifallbetweeriffthe staclrharid said container receiving station; means having down ward engagernent with the of said lowermost con tainer of thef stack tof loosen the containerifrorothj stack whilesaid first rotor "occupies said secondlrotate I l i positiohfand approach to said secotid rotated being tiltable relative tofsaid'first rotor aboutaxesex} circumferentially extending peripheral portuonjdefining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermostpan ofisaid stack has downward engagement to support said stack 1 when said first rotor occupies a' firstrotated position wherein said ledge interceptsjsaid line offall the stack and said containerreceiving station stack while said firstrotor occupies said secondrotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means incltiding a blade definedby a radially extended wing {portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the peripheryofthe first rotor.

2. A separator unitaccording to claim 1 wherein said? second rotor is tiltablerelative tosaidfirst rotor about axes extending radially of said shafnand spacermeans l acting between said first and second rotors iseffective to limit downward tilting movement of the bladewhen said blade occupies a position in the line -of fallof said containers in said stack;

3. A separator unitfor seouentially denestirig like containers each having an outwardly; projecting grim at t the mouth thereof whilesaidcontainersare in open endf l l upward nested relation defining an upright stackas an incident to transfer otfsaidcontainers along aLpredetermined line of fall betweensaid stack andwa eontainer depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft snpportedofor rotation in a predetermined directionjiabout a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to saidlshaft for rotation in unisonwith said shaft, afsecondrotor coupled to said first rotor in overheadirelationto said f first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relal tive to said first rotorqwhile allowing said second rotor t to have limited movementjaxially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, said firstfrotcr having a circumferentially' extending peripheralsportion defining a ledge with which theirim of the lowermost pan of saiclf between in 3 and said 3 position, s4 means iricliiding ablade definedfby a rat "dially [exter ded jwing portionqof the second frotor in ottitand Imeansfor}relievinglfrorh said lowermost contaiherthe weight of alltheupper containersfof said r stackvexceptfora pm-determined number of Canaan-g rs immediately above saidj lowermost containerwhile;

said lowermost: container [is being loosened; rim 1 11th next lowerr nost container, and said ledge of said jfir'st rotor inc luding" aramp inclined upwardly infthedirec tion of rotationroffsaid rotor, said ramp portion being t located between said first rotated position of said rotor; l f and said second rotated position ofsaidfirotor saidl I weight relieving mafiS eing positioned tdbeginto en-i jgagewsaid rirns of saidflcontainers when the lowermost; container of the upper} containers reaches the highest pointonsaid inclined portion of said ledge andto dis-l engage csaid rims when; said lowermost container has laeenloosenedfrornssaid neirtlowest container, II a separator unit according to claim 3 wherein sa ffirstrotorincludes ahelicaljgroove to receive said rim of gsaidjjlowerniost confainer to drive said lowermost containerdownwardly nline with said predetermined y line ofi'fall until id lowermost container hasy been completely re s from said sex: lowest container-L 1 1 Aseparatorunitaccording to claim 3wherein said i weigntfrelievingmeans ir cludes a separate rotor sjitu Fatedl ab ove said first; second arid thirdrotors and on a ycommontgaxis there ithgnand said barid is offsetfjoiitwardlyfromsaidseparaterotorg: if to l ,6, A separator unitjforwseque tiallyidenestiriglike containers each having an :outwardlyprojecting rirn at l themouth thereof White said containers arein open end up'ward nestedirelationjdefining an upright stackas an incidentto transferofsaid containers along a predeter I flminedflinezof falljfbetweensaid staek a'nd mmer depositing statio i vertically aligned relation jto said stack, saidjunit including i a driven shaft supported for rotation in apredetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel tosaidstaclqafirstirotor secured" to said shaft ij for rotationf in unisonnwith said shaft, a second rotor coi pled to said first rotorfin overhead relationjjto said i f rst rotor toprevent rotation of said second rotor rela tiveto saidiirst rotor whlleallowing said secondrotorj lflto have limited movement axially of said shaft toward away from said s mmer, said first rotor having a f rentiallyextendingperipheralportion defining with whichjythe riin of the lowermost panof said 1 stack hasdownwardengagement to support said stack when saidfirst rotor occupies a first rotatedposition wherein saidledge intercepts; said line ofi fallbetween l the stack and said contain er receiving stationjland said,

fover' e f f relation to said gap in the periphery the i first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of the first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said'first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the periphery of the first rotor, and means for relieving from said lowermost container the weight of all the upper containers of said stack except for a pre-determined number of containers immediately above said lowermost container while said lowermost container is being loosened from the next lowermost container, and a third rotor located above and on a common axis with said first rotor and said second rotor, and a knockout pin disposed between said first rotor and said third rotor at a point near the periphery of said rotors just following the trailing edge of said blade to prevent said rim of said container from being trapped between said blade and said third rotor.

7. A separator unit according to claim 6 wherein said first rotor includes a helical groove to receive said rim of said lowermost container to drive said lowermost container downwardly in line with said predetermined line of fall until said lowermost container has been completely released from said next lowest container.

8. A separator unit for sequentially denesting like containers each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof while said containers are in open end upward nested relation defining an upright stack as an incident to transfer of said containers along a predetermined line of fall between said stack and a container overhead relation to said. gap in depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft supported for rotation in a predetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to said shaft for rotation in unison with said shaft, a second rotor coupled to said first rotor in-overhead relation to said first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relative to said first rotor while allowing said second rotor to have limited movement axially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, said first rotor having a circumferentially extending peripheral portion defining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermost pan of said stack has downward engagement to support said stack when said first rotor occupies a first rotated position wherein said ledge intercepts said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station and said first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of the first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in the periphery of the first rotor, and a third rotor located above and on a common axis with said first rotor and said second rotor and a knockout pin disposed between said 1st rotor and said third rotor at a point near the periphery of said rotors just following the trailing edge of said blade to prevent said rim of said containers from being trapped between said blade and said third rotor. 

1. A separator unit for sequentially denesting like containers each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof while said containers are in open end upward nested relation defining an upright stack as an incident to transfer of said containers along a predetermined line of fall between said stack and a container depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft supported for rotation in a predetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to said shaft for rotation in unison with said shaft, a second rotor coupled to said first rotor in overhead relation to said first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relative to said first rotor while allowing said second rotor to have limited movement axially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, and said second rotor being tiltable relative to said first rotor about axes extending radially of said shaft said first rotor having a circumferentially extending peripheral portion defining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermost pan of said stack has downward engagement to support said stack when said first rotor occupies a first rotated position wherein said ledge intercepts said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station and said first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of thE first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the periphery of the first rotor.
 2. A separator unit according to claim 1 wherein said second rotor is tiltable relative to said first rotor about axes extending radially of said shaft, and spacer means acting between said first and second rotors is effective to limit downward tilting movement of the blade when said blade occupies a position in the line of fall of said containers in said stack.
 3. A separator unit for sequentially denesting like containers each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof while said containers are in open end upward nested relation defining an upright stack as an incident to transfer of said containers along a predetermined line of fall between said stack and a container depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft supported for rotation in a predetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to said shaft for rotation in unison with said shaft, a second rotor coupled to said first rotor in overhead relation to said first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relative to said first rotor while allowing said second rotor to have limited movement axially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, said first rotor having a circumferentially extending peripheral portion defining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermost pan of said stack has downward engagement to support said stack when said first rotor occupies a first rotated position wherein said ledge intercepts said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station and said first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of the first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the periphery of the first rotor, and means for relieving from said lowermost container the weight of all the upper containers of said stack except for a pre-determined number of containers immediately above said lowermost container while said lowermost container is being loosened from the next lowermost container, and said ledge of said first rotor including a ramp inclined upwardly in the direction of rotation of said rotor, said ramp portion being located between said first rotated position of said rotor and said second rotated position of said rotor, said weight relieving means being positioned to begin to engage said rims of said containers when the lowermost container of the upper containers reaches the highest point on said inclined portion of said ledge and to disengage said rims when said lowermost container has been loosened from said next lowest container.
 4. A separator unit according to claim 3 wherein said first rotor includes a helical groove to receive said rim of said lowermost container to drive said lowermost container downwardly in line with said predetermined line of fall until said lowermost contaIner has been completely released from said next lowest container.
 5. A separator unit according to claim 3 wherein said weight relieving means includes a separate rotor situated above said first, second and third rotors and on a common axis therewith, and said band is offset outwardly from said separate rotor.
 6. A separator unit for sequentially denesting like containers each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof while said containers are in open end upward nested relation defining an upright stack as an incident to transfer of said containers along a predetermined line of fall between said stack and a container depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft supported for rotation in a predetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to said shaft for rotation in unison with said shaft, a second rotor coupled to said first rotor in overhead relation to said first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relative to said first rotor while allowing said second rotor to have limited movement axially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, said first rotor having a circumferentially extending peripheral portion defining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermost pan of said stack has downward engagement to support said stack when said first rotor occupies a first rotated position wherein said ledge intercepts said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station and said first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of the first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the periphery of the first rotor, and means for relieving from said lowermost container the weight of all the upper containers of said stack except for a pre-determined number of containers immediately above said lowermost container while said lowermost container is being loosened from the next lowermost container, and a third rotor located above and on a common axis with said first rotor and said second rotor, and a knockout pin disposed between said first rotor and said third rotor at a point near the periphery of said rotors just following the trailing edge of said blade to prevent said rim of said container from being trapped between said blade and said third rotor.
 7. A separator unit according to claim 6 wherein said first rotor includes a helical groove to receive said rim of said lowermost container to drive said lowermost container downwardly in line with said predetermined line of fall until said lowermost container has been completely released from said next lowest container.
 8. A separator unit for sequentially denesting like containers each having an outwardly projecting rim at the mouth thereof while said containers are in open end upward nested relation defining an upright stack as an incident to transfer of said containers along a predetermined line of fall between said stack and a container depositing station in vertically aligned relation to said stack, said unit including a driven shaft supported for rotation in a predetermined direction about a fixed axis parallel to said stack, a first rotor secured to said shaft for rotation in unison with said shaft, a second rotor coupled to said first rotor in overhead relation to said first rotor to prevent rotation of said second rotor relative to said first rotor while allowing said second Rotor to have limited movement axially of said shaft toward and away from said first rotor, said first rotor having a circumferentially extending peripheral portion defining a ledge with which the rim of the lowermost pan of said stack has downward engagement to support said stack when said first rotor occupies a first rotated position wherein said ledge intercepts said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station and said first rotor having a circumferentially relieved peripheral portion defining a gap through which the rim of the lowermost pan of the stack is disengaged from said ledge of the first rotor when said rotor occupies a second rotated position wherein said gap is in vertical alignment with said line of fall between the stack and said container receiving station, means having downward engagement with the rim of said lowermost container of the stack to loosen the container from the stack while said first rotor occupies said second rotated position and during approach to said second rotated position, said means including a blade defined by a radially extended wing portion of the second rotor in overhead relation to said gap in the periphery of the first rotor, and a third rotor located above and on a common axis with said first rotor and said second rotor and a knockout pin disposed between said 1st rotor and said third rotor at a point near the periphery of said rotors just following the trailing edge of said blade to prevent said rim of said containers from being trapped between said blade and said third rotor. 